SHAZZAM! ....You called? Here I am, setting the record straight on that very last statement: That must be the oddest thing I've heard here for a while - WHERE have I ever tried to SELL my books here (except when they were published): I don't make any real money on my books. And considering my number of posts, when do I ever flaunt the fact that I wrote them, as in "I am the author of..."?

I may be perceived as doing so, because a.) many here know that I wrote the books, and b.) I have strong opinions on what makes Tiki unique, and I can back them up with intelligent arguments, but all I am "selling" here is my belief of what constitutes the true character of Tiki style.

There are others who have made way more money in Tikidom from its revival and from my research, and I am completely fine with that, commerce is a driving factor in any pop culture. But I am very sensitive to anyone insinuating I have commercial motives. I am very happy that I have regular work as a cameraman and can pay my bills that way, and that Tiki has remained a hobby - not work.

And this is a good point to make about many of the folks involved in making and doing things in Tiki today: As far as I can tell, for most it is still an activity that they are into because first of all, they love Tiki, while the making money aspect comes later. I think that is one of the things that makes our little community great, kudos to everyone for that!

On 2013-10-22 20:18, Tipsy McStagger wrote:only thing missing from this thread is bigbrotiki, setting the record straight for us and simultaneously trying to sell us a book !!

Tipsy, nothing but respect for your opinions and I enjoy your posts very much. Bigbro needs no one to cover his back but I think you’re a bit off base with the latter part of your statement. Not trying to start a brouhaha-lets all have fun!
Cheers,
David

This is a fascinating discussion, with some very interesting opinions.

From my own personal perspective, I can see the value in Tiki Farm's lowbrow mugs and other lowbrow influences on tiki, even though I don't actually possess any mugs that would fall outside the classical tiki definition. Before I even knew about tiki as a pop-cultural thing, I was just really into contemporary tourist tiki carvings, having travelled somewhat throughout the South Pacific.

My interest in the carvings organically led me to discover the tiki scene some years later and, interestingly enough, through purveyors of the tiki crafts that bend the rules (like Tiki Farm, amongst others) I've since been led on to discover other incredible artistic avenues, like the lowbrow, surf and hot rod world. So while I'd agree that none of that stuff is classic tiki... it's still really awesome and definitely has a place alongside it.

Wow talk about déjà vu!
The Society for Creative Anachronisms went all of this ~30 years ago.
Conclusion, it’s a damn big tent, one man’s crap is another’s gold, yes people are going to make money off it, no there is nothing you can do beyond whining and annoying everyone so deal with it.
'S'all good!

TikiTacky, I went back to your original post then to TikiFarms site. Yes there are mugs that are hot rod/lowbrow inspired but many more that are tiki inspired. Even on that first page (the latest mugs?) there are a couple I admired for there "tiki" cred. Of the hot rods at least one was under their "liquid lowbrow" moniker not TikiFarm.

Also I have to say that we are lucky that TikiFarm and other ceramists are making any tiki mugs, making other styles of mugs is great if it helps to keep them in business and making the mugs we appreciate.

TikiGreg, the Crane mug does look much more like the statue you showed, but on TC and Ooga-Mooga it is nearly universally called the Stephen (Steve) Crane Ku mug . Turns out that it should really be called the Stephen Crane "War God" mug after the drink served in it at Cranes' Kon-Tiki restaurants (and, yes, among other things Ku is a war god).

As for what's a "real" tiki mug, I'll collect what I'm drawn to you can collect what you want and I'll try to hold my tongue when I see a bunch of Benihana mugs at your home bar.

On 2013-10-22 22:16, zond2 wrote:Conclusion, it’s a damn big tent, one man’s crap is another’s gold, yes people are going to make money off it, no there is nothing you can do beyond whining and annoying everyone so deal with it.
'S'all good!

I don't recall anyone complaining about folks making a profit: the argument has been (and apparently will continue to be) whether commercial success justifies an artistic sellout. If you can swallow the premise that the one demands the other, then of course the argument settles itself. I just don't buy into the defense that one has to cheapen, degrade and dilute a creative idiom in order to remain viable within it. Quite the opposite: the history and tradition of the idiom obliges the creator to elevate his output to the highest level achievable, not reduce it to its low-browest common denominator.

I just did a quick inventory. Tiki Farm lists 36 mugs and shot glasses currently on their website. Of those, I would say eight would be considered traditional form and wouldn't be out of place in a restaurant like the Mai Kai (and that's including a coconut mug).

As has been noted, there are lots of other artists producing traditional form tiki mugs, but they tend to start at $65 and go up from there (or, in the case of Crazy Al or Gecko, they start at more than I have and go up from there!). This isn't surprising, really—a huge amount of work goes into making these mugs, and unless you're mass producing them there's simply no reasonable way to bring the costs down.

I don't fault Tiki Farm for offering what sells. They never claimed to only cater to the traditional tiki crowd (whatever that is), and I don't feel they "sold out." As a collector who happens to be more of a "purist," I simply wish there were more offerings available that were cheaper. It's not a judgement, but more of a lament.
_________________"You can't eat real Polynesian food. It's the most horrible junk I've ever tasted." —Trader Vic Bergeron